


Reunion

by Ralcemns



Category: Mortal Engines Series - Philip Reeve
Genre: Dr. Crumb is my favorite and I just, Fix-It, Gen, I mean we did eventually see his confession that he cared about her, I was all like why isn't he getting emotional again???, I was not happy with the ending of Scrivener's Moon, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SO GOOD, but WE NEVER GOT ANY FULL-FLEDGED FATHER-DAUGHTER TIME, justice for Dr. Crumb, let Dr. Crumb hug his daughter, like yeah he locked his heart up but because of Fever's death, so seeing her alive should reverse that???
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-15 16:54:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15417414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ralcemns/pseuds/Ralcemns
Summary: Any time I was reading any book in the Fever Crumb series and Fever and Dr. Crumb were separated I was chanting for them to reunite. They reunited like three times. Despite even the previous times I would've liked them to finally fully dive into their relationship, here is my reconstrual of their last meeting.





	Reunion

"Oi! Dr. Crumb!"

"What is it, constable?" asked Dr. Crumb, turning to face the incoming coppertop. "Is there an emergency? Nothing structural, I hope?"

"No, no, sir, no," the policeman said. "It is only... we have your daughter aboard, sir."

Dr. Crumb's thoughts skipped for a moment, like a record with a nick.

"... My daughter is dead," he pulled out of the files in his mind as the rest of it was remembering how to function again.

"I can't help that, sir," said the man. "She came aboard with a foreign misshape woman and Captain Andringa. He swore she's Miss Fever Crumb. But he's been took to the infirmary now, and we can't let her go topside unless we're quite sure of it."

Dr. Crumb's mind slowly creaked back into motion. "Show me."

The coppertop led him along the walkways that bridged the Great Under Tier and down a stair into one of the side-crofts. Dr. Crumb began to lengthen his stride, to hasten it. His heartbeat pumped stronger.

_Impossible._ His mind whirred quickly now. _Fever cannot be alive. She is dead. She was lost in the north. Sheー_

A ragtag crowd of battered soldiery had gathered at the destination, barely recognizable as the same brave fellows who had left London to defend the northern approaches. The smoke from London's engines still lingered under the high iron roof, but through vents and grilles the evening light came in. Under one such vent, where the air was freshest, a young woman waited.

Dr. Crumb halted cold in his tracks.

"Well, sir," asked the coppertop in a confidential way, "is that her?"

The woman's clothes were of the northern fashion and so dirty that they looked as if she'd taken them off a dead she-tramp in a muddy ditch. Her greasy hair trailed almost to her shoulders. Her face was gaunt, bruised, and empty-looking.

But Dr. Crumb knew well those mismatched eyes which widened slightly as she gazed upon him.

The both of them stood frozen in front of each other for likely a full minute. They simply stared.

"Father?" squeaked out of Fever. It was foreign to attribute such a word to her voice.

All at once, Dr. Crumb threw out his arms and wrapped them tightly around her.

"My little Fever!" he cried, bending to bury himself in her shoulder even though she was not as small as the images of her which flashed through his mind. "Fever, Fever! You're alive!"

"Yes," she whimpered in a wobbly way. She buried herself into his shoulder, too, embracing his security.

"I've missed you so much!" Her father wept into her grimy clothes. "I was so distraught, I...!"

The rest of the people gathered only gawped to see such an esteemed Engineer behaving in that manner. When he drew back and kissed his daughter, they double-checked their vision.

Dr. Crumb cupped his dear Fever's face in his hands. "Where have you been? What happened to you?"

"Wavey is dead," Fever informed, still some spec of rationality helping to formulate her words. "At Jotungardー"

"But what happened to you? Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Dr. Crumb worried.

A small breath puffed past Fever's lips as they inched into upturn. "Yes."

Her father tied an arm over her shoulders, guiding her back towards the stairs. "We should find you some clean clothes, and soap and water. You are in dire need of some sanitation..."

Their spectators watched on. What would become of the moving city with their Chief of Engineers like this, they didn't know. All that seemed to be was that the cage that had snared their Engineer's heart had found its key to free its captive once again.

Years of raising her from infancy could not be erased. Gideon Crumb would always have the heart to look after his dear Fever Crumb.

**Author's Note:**

> and that doesn't even include all the interactions I wanted once their relationship was openly affectionate


End file.
